Cutting Through Nothing
by RainbowChimpanzee
Summary: With his father dead, and his mother in a severe state of depression, Will runs. He never intended to look back, but the fire in the distance caught his eye. Will/Warren slash, angst, character death. Set two years in the future.


**RainbowDisclaims:** I don't own Sky High…In fact, I don't even own the computer I'm typing this on. Damn. I'm broke.

**RainbowSays:** Hello there! (in the gayest voice possible, as flowers, sunshine, sparkles, and rainbows magically fall out of a unicorn's ass) This is to be my second story on this wonderful site. I hope that I don't veer way off the characterizations. If any of them are totally out of character, let me know. All reviews are welcome, but let this be a warning to you all (dramatic music blares in the background). Flames will be used to burn holes in tasteless blue plastic lunch trays and cafeteria walls! Anyhow…this fic here involves slash. That means that there will be some boy on boy action. Hot, sexy, male to male, slashy, smutty sex! OH YEAH! SPANK ME TIL TUESDAY!…ummm…I apologize…But aside from all that, I have to say, this is spell-checked, but it is not beta-ed. If anyone likes this story enough to want to be my beta, then great! I have no idea what a beta even is. Yes. Rainbow is a n00b. This story is rated M…for a very good reason. This isn't your regular run-of-the-mill kids story. Oh no.

**RainbowThanks:** No one yet silly! No one has reviewed yet!

**RainbowWants:** I'm not going to set a number of reviews for this chapter since it is the first (it isn't really a chapter per se anyhow haha), however, as is the way, reviews are my inspiration. If you love the story, please tell me so. If not, well…then…you know what'll happen…absolutely nothing. Onto the story!

**PROLOGUE**

**frozen**

Helplessness did not even _begin_ to describe the way Will felt as the all-powerful Commander lay lifelessly in his arms, blood making its way down from his ear and mouth. His heart lodged itself in his throat, and his stomach dropped to the ground as his father's eyes rolled to the back of his head, indicating that Steven Stronghold's life was now at its end. His breath hitched, silent tears threatening to make themselves known on his cheeks. The pain was almost physical. It was as if time stood still, mocking him, reveling in the moment. The image would never erase itself from his mind. Watching a loved one, especially a father, die, in your arms no less, would be an incredibly traumatic event for anyone. Though, he knew better than to cry. He knew he had to be prepared. It was a battle after all, and you never lose your head in a battle, no matter what. With a final goodbye from his thoughts, William T. Stronghold laid his father gently on the ground and focused his attention to the doting bitch responsible for this. All that he'd learned from The Commander would now come into play as he stood, face to face, with the cryokinetic femme fatale known, simply, as Frost. His father's voice rang in his head as he recalled every single thing his father had taught him about fighting a super villain, or in this case villainess. He was beyond angry. Beyond sad. He was downright dangerous, and they both knew it. She even recoiled a bit when his eyes met hers, but being the 'cold as ice', respect-demanding, and elegant person she was, she only let herself slip for a second before icy words formed from her frigid lips.

"Oh, how the mighty have fallen." arrogance and pride lacing her tongue, "You know, William, I get the feeling that you and daddy are about to become very, very close."

"You stupid, arrogant BITCH!" Will flew. He flew as fast as superhumanly possible, arms held out in front of him, ready to end the madwoman once and for all. Fast was not fast enough however, as Frost waved her hand absentmindedly in front of Will, the chill freezing him on the spot. He fell to the ground, stiff and unmoving, not unlike his father just feet away.

"Ah, ah, ah." she taunted, "Your temper is untamed, William. Your daddy didn't raise you like that did he? You've got to learn to keep a level head, or else you'll never get anywhere…" she trailed off, turning to face the, now slowly moving, body on the ground by her feet. "Although, it won't matter anyhow. You aren't going to _be_ for much longer either." If Will's face could move, he would've grimaced at the pure darkness and evil in her words. However, he could not move very quickly, he was so cold. He'd tried to. He'd tried his hardest, but he only got a few inches forward when she began to laugh. Her spike-heeled boot landed hard onto Will's back, preventing him from getting any further. She leaned down, her sub-zero breath encasing Will's ear, as she whispered softly. "I'm going to kill you William. I'm going to end your life, don't you worry your pretty little head about that. But I'm not unintelligent. Where is mommy dearest, William?" Will's heart sank. Jetstream had been told to wait exactly 20 minutes before rushing into the building, giving the elements of confusion, and surprise. Unfortunately, their plan had failed, quite miserably, and the time was almost up. Any minute, good old Josie Stronghold would come bursting through the wall of the Ice Fortress, and Will would be powerless to help her. He finally came to the realization, his frozen eyebrows slightly raising. She was going to kill his mother too, right in front of him, before she did away with the boy. "That's right William. She's next; and I won't be nearly as lenient as I was on your father." What had that meant? Lenient? How was killing his father in any way lenient? The only thing worse than death was…torture. Was she going to torture his mother? Will almost regurgitated right there, had he not been in the cryogenic state he was in. His thoughts remained intact, while his voice lay broken inside his chest. He suddenly felt very small. His whole world had just crashed around him, and he wouldn't even get the chance to pick up the pieces. He'd lost. He'd been defeated. He was ashamed. But most of all, he was afraid. Afraid for his mother. Afraid that the Ice Queen would do something so inhumane as to…he didn't event _want _to imagine. His faith was fading and his life was ending. All he could do now was accept it. He didn't want to. That wasn't Will. He never gave up, never backed down, always stood proud and valiant, ready to face whatever was thrown at him. He shouldn't have even been there in the first place. He was only a Junior in high school. He wouldn't get the chance to graduate. He wouldn't be able to go to prom. He wouldn't be able to go on to be one of the greatest superheroes in the world. He wouldn't get to do anything…and he felt helpless. Helpless, scared, and ashamed.

The wall shuddered. Will knew that Jetstream was breaking the wall, entering the sanctum that would now be her final resting place, along with The Commander, and William. He felt his heart break. Knowing something horrible is about to happen can be worse than seeing something horrible happen. When you see something horrible happen, it is solidified in your mind. That _is_ what happened. There are no questions. You saw it with your own eyes. When you _know_ something horrible is _about_ to happen, your mind will conjure up every single worst-case-scenario you can come up with. The mind is your best weapon, but it can also be your worst flaw. A man can drive himself crazy thinking of sick, twisted things that _could_ happen, when he won't know what will happen until it happens. He could hear his father.

_ "Over-thinking is just as bad, if not worse, than not thinking thoroughly enough"_

He tried hard. Tried not to think of what _might be._ As hard as he tried, though, he couldn't keep that image from coming to his mind. It twisted his stomach in knots and, again, he felt powerless. He willed himself to stay awake, but he'd never felt so cold. So cold…

"STEVE!" Oh shit. Mom. His mind was now on full alert. He couldn't see what was going on, his face pointed to the floor, unable to move. But he felt as if he really didn't want to. He didn't think he could handle seeing his mother being subjected to such dark and medieval practices. His worries were for naught, however, as a warm sensation passed over his body. As he was still facing the ground, he couldn't see the black and leather clad fire-starter above his frozen form, but he could hear the pained screams of the Ice Queen as the fire contacted with her arctic skin. Everything was a blur after that as the feeling of safety allowed Will to slip into the realm of unconsciousness, his slowly warming form resting on the ground.

Will awoke with a jolt, first noticing the difference in his body temperature. The second thing he took note of was that he was home. He let out a brief sigh of relief before he remembered…his dad. He jumped out of bed, rushing through the doorway and sprinting down the stairs. As he expected, his mom sat at the kitchen table, head in her hands, with what appeared to be a file under her elbows. Her glasses lay forgotten on the table as silent tears poured down her cheeks. Will instinctively wrapped his arms around her, a show of familial unity…what was left of it. She placed a hand on his arm. No words needed to be spoken. This, they knew, was a dark day. But they did not know that it was to be the first of many. And as the curtain closed that night, a somber air hung over the house. An unwelcome guest in for a long stay.

**RainbowConcludes:** This is short I realize, but it _is_ just a prologue. The actual chapters will be much, much longer. I have a plan for the way that this will go, but, as I'm sure you all know, reviewers with ideas are always encouraged to come forth and share them. Like I said, I have no beta, the job is up for grabs if you think you'd like to work with me. I'm very easy to get along with. I hope you guys liked it, as I surely enjoyed writing it! My other story is in the works too, but it wasn't nearly as well written as this one. It's called Disowned. It's a Life With Derek fic, if you guys are familiar with that show. I hope to hear from you guys! Thanks!

-RainbowChimpanzee


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